


How My Family History is a Lie

by Mayamelissa



Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: I am so sorry if this stops making sense, I'm taking liberties with the canon
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-01
Updated: 2015-11-08
Packaged: 2018-04-29 04:54:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 18
Words: 8,706
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5116334
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mayamelissa/pseuds/Mayamelissa
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Brahms Trevelyan is proud, intelligent, well mannered and everything her family could want as a noble born. She's a capable fighter, talented musician, and all in all exactly what the descendant of The Grand Inquisitor who saved the world should be. Due to a magical mishap, Brahms find herself thrust over 1500 years back to the exact point her family's name went into the history books.</p><p>If that wasn't bad enough: her ancestor is anything BUT the amazing woman she's been led to believe.</p><p>And the worst part is? She has now has 2 choices: be killed or play replacement for someone who would rather take care of her own desires than save the world.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Having a slight issue with By Gods We Were Betrayed. So I'm gonna write on this one.
> 
> I am sad, lonely, and just can't stop writing.
> 
> *hides under blanket* HELP ME!!!!

Brahms Trevelyan was very sure she was going to die today.

For the last week, she'd been stuck in a cell somewhere because she'd tried to stop a soldier beating up a girl outside the city walls. She'd bloodied the blight sucker's nose and although the girl had gotten away, Brahms had not been so lucky. Now she was sitting there, still hurt and sore from being forced into custody and being kicked more than once in the stomach. Her mana was low, she desperately needed to bathe, and she hadn't eaten in the 3 days because the same soldier who she'd bloodied up had somehow managed to convince someone to be in charge of her meals and he either ruined them or tried to get her to give him sex for it.

It was now day 4 of his disgusting behavior and she was sick of it.

"I demand you either let me speak to the Warden or whomever is in charge of this place or I will ensure that the next time you open your mouth to proposition me, you won't live to see the next day," she warned.

The soldier smirked. "Little girl, by the time I get done with you you're gonna beg me to be the one to kill you," he said, dumping her would be breakfast in front of her cell door. "Oh look at that? What a waste. How long do you think you can survive without food and on some high and mighty noble mentality, honey? Soon your gonna be too tired to do anything and then I'm gonna-"

"What is going on here?"

The soldier stiffened and looked fearful at the voice. "Um nothing, Commander!" he said quickly. Brahms looked in the direction of the new person and was met with the sight of an incredibly handsome gentlemen. "Oh really, Private? Because if I recall you were reassigned and not supposed to be anywhere near the cells until the investigation was finished. And from the mess at your feet, I say you've been here for more than just one trip of meal delivery."

"Uh... I..."

"Go to Lady Leliana's office," the Commander growled. "Now."

The soldier skulked off, giving Brahms a hateful look before leaving. She to her credit stayed expressionless. When they were alone, the tall blond man looked over to the side. "Jailer! Open this door. I'm relocating the prisoner."

"Right away, Sir."

He looked at her, his face as stoic as hers was. She got to her feet as the door was opened and walked out, her hands still bound in the same rope that had been put there since her incarceration. "Come with me," was all he said.

Yes, Brahms thought grimly. She was very certain she was going to die today.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hate when it rains. I get tired and lose the ability to write well & concentrate.

Okay, so perhaps she was getting a bath and clean clothes before she was being executed?

The Commander had led her up the stairs and handed her off to someone, a rather tall elf who spoke in iambic pentameter with a staff that showed he was a mage. The elf had grabbed her left hand and examined it for reasons she couldn't understand. He nodded to the Commander who beckoned someone. "Take the prisoner to get cleaned up. And have a healer brought to examine her," he ordered.

"Right away."

"Excuse me, my lady but when was the last time you ate?"

Brahms looked at the Cullen in surprise. "Four days prior," she answered. Both he and Solas frowned at this. Were they concerned? "We'll get you something after the meeting," he assured her. "For now we must get you cleaned up." Brahms nodded, still unsure what was going on. What meeting? They were in the middle of a war and she'd assaulted a soldier of, well whatever place this was. She was pretty sure that called for execution, didn't it?

She opened her mouth to say something, but the elf spoke instead. "Commander I will return to my studies. You know where to find me."

"Thank you, Solas. Excuse me, My Lady."

And with that, Brahms pretty much had no clue what was going on except for she was getting a bath.

A very nice hot bath as it turned out. Someone had been kind enough to leave oils for her to wash her hair with as well. Thank providence her family had spent every year since she could walk organizing those week long events based on this time period so she would know what to do. If she ever returned to her own time, she was most certainly never going to complain again about her parents' desire to hold those affairs.

That was very big if.

As big as the giant hole in the sky.

She finished her bath and got changed, feeling cleaner but no less certain that things were looking up.

After a quick examination by the healer who mumbled words under his breath she could barely understand, she was escorted to the meeting that Commander Cullen had warned her about wondering exactly why she wasn't dead yet. 


	3. Chapter 3

She wasn't stuck in the past. No she was incredibly sure she'd just lost her mind now and somewhere in reality she was in a padded cell, wearing a straight jacket. Because none of what she was hearing made sense.

"I beg your pardon, but could you repeat that? I'm rather afraid I didn't catch what you just asked of me."

"Which part did you not understand?" the woman called Cassandra asked, face stern. She reminded her of her mother in a way.

"The part where you wish of me to pretend to be the Herald of Andraste," Brahms stated. "Listen I am aware that we look alike, very much alike-"

"Solas has told us you hold a connection with her. Some kind but he could not give specifics. He said you could tell us but we may not believe you."

Who was Solas and how did he know that? "Well I don't know who this Solas is, but he is correct in that account. Listen, I somehow managed to find myself in this place at this time period because something happened to me back home."

"Your time period?" the one called Lelaina repeated, obviously intrigued.

Curse her and her loose tongue.

"All right, forget it. I'll spell it out for you: I come from the future give or take 1500 years. This whole event is a very highly regarded memory for the history books and I'm descended from your Herald. Now maybe you'd like to put the shackles back on me or execute me for being mad."

"So Solas was right about your connection then," Leliana mused.

"Pardon, but I just told you the most hair brained insane thing you could ever hear and you are believing it. Why?"

"Because we must. Just as we must believe the girl with the mark is the only one who can close the rifts," Cassandra explained.

"That makes no sense."

Cullen gave a hollow laugh. "The whole world no longer makes sense," he declared. "Listen all we wish for you to do is act in the Herald's stead for more public engagements. The Herald herself refuses to do it. She will not assist us unless we promise to leave her alone outside of rift closures."

"Are you honestly telling me my ancestor is currently cowering in her room like spoiled child while the world is ending around us?!"

The four of them nodded in unison. She shook her head. "No, no... that cannot be right," she exclaimed, placing her hands on the war table. "Brahms Trevelyan was a fighter. Fearless, compassionate-"

Cullen snorted and she looked at him. "Would you mind telling me what's so funny, Commander? I'm not in on the joke, as it were."

"Your history books were wrong," Cassandra said. "She cannot fight. And she refuses to do so. We had to drag her to the Temple of Sacred Ashes and force her to help us."

Brahms covered her face with her hands. "This cannot be happening. I cannot believe this." Her body was shaking and she grabbed a chair, sliding into it. Cassandra got her some water and she downed the glass. "I have trained and grown up all my life being told how my namesake, Brahms Trevelyan was a master of magic and she could wield any weapon with unrivaled ease. She never backed down from a fight and she did all she could to protect her friends. She saved a lost patrol on the mountainside because she hoped-"

"Another lie from your history books. She chose for us to let the soldiers clear a path and it cost us many a good warrior getting her there."

"Oh sweet ancestors, no," Brahms said bowing her head in horror. "How could she not even charge with them to lessen casualties? No. No, I need to see her in action for myself if I am to believe this. This is madness."

"On one condition. If you find what we say to be true, you will agree to what we ask?"

"I hardly think that goes without saying, Lady Leliana. Although I do not know how my posing as the Herald will assist in any vital manner. I have no mark or ability to close rifts. I am afraid my help with be poor. Unless you wish for me to give you information on upcoming battles, strategies - wait, of course you will. Well then I guess I will be but a brain you can bleed dry and a target you can place in the city square."

"I don't believe anyone was planning on doing those things, Lady Trevelyan," Cullen assured her.

"Weren't you?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. "Because from where I stand, Commander Cullen, I am merely just a tool to save the world. I have no family, no friends, and the only truth I have ever known may very well be a festering rotting lie. My whole world is caving in and I have no rescue rope to bring me to safety." She looked at the map on the table. "Has she gone to speak to Mother Giselle yet? You will need the sister's assistance in this and there are a few rifts in the Hinterlands. Also there's a horse master by the name of Dennet who can supply the Inquisition with horses if we can secure his safety."

"No. We were going to ask her to go there after we spoke with you. You really do know the future?"

"I come from the future. A long long time but many details were carefully protected so they could be remembered with little to no change," Brahms reaffirmed. "With your permission I wish to accompany you all in this journey so I can see just how full of lies my family's history is."

She hoped the straight jacket wasn't chaffing.

 


	4. Chapter 4

Was there a regulated term for the killing of one's ancestor?

Brahms kept racking her mind for an appropriate term. Matricide didn't seem to fit what she was want to to do this whining, lazy, selfish piece of- She took a deep breath to calm herself. When Cassandra had informed her about the trip to the Temple earlier, Brahms had thought she was a coward and her hiding in her cabin post everything had just been her avoiding responsibility or working with them out of fear. Oh if only that had been why.

Currently on the way to the Hinterlands, the Herald of Andraste, her ancestor had done nothing but complain. She hadn't helped ready her horse. She complained and whined about how she wanted to ride in a carriage instead. There were bugs apparently only trying to eat her. She was hungry. She was tired. Solas' head kept reflecting sunlight and getting into her eyes.

Brahms really really just wanted to kill her and let the world end.

It got worse when they stumbled into a scuffle between some apostates and templars. She'd ran off and hid while Solas, Cassandra, Varric and Brahms all fought. Brahms had even been forced to save the insufferable woman at least once from getting impaled or set on fire. "I nearly died right there," Trevelyan shrieked after the last enemy was put down. "Why weren't you all faster?!"

"Perhaps if you would have liked to assist us? I'm certain you were trained in some form of combat, were you not?" Brahms asked. The Herald shot her a look that failed to intimidate. "And maybe you would like to kiss my ass, whomever you are! I'm already doing enough by having this thing! I'm not going to fight while I have people to do it for me."

"Then I would suggest you not complain as much while people are attempting to secure your safety," Brahms replied. "After all it's in our best interests to protect you and your verbal abuse isn't doing much in the way of encouraging our morale."

"Well just work harder or something. Why is this masked person here with us again?" Trevelyan asked Cassandra. The Seeker sighed. "To ensure your safety and help negotiate for the Inquisition." _Because you're not going to_ , was the unspoken end of her sentence. Luckily Trevelyan was too self-absorbed to notice and she just stamped her foot childishly. "Fine, whatever. Let's get this over with so I don't have to deal this shit for much longer and can get back to that cramped little space in Haven." She stalked off like the overgrown petulant child she was.

"Are you alright?" Solas asked Brahms. The dark hair woman shook her head, looking for loot from the bodies. "She is far more unpleasant than I thought," the woman admitted. "That... person is supposed to be the savior of Thedas, my _ancestor_. I'm descended from... THAT!?"

"Oh right," Varric declared. "You're supposed to be from the future, aren't you?"

"Yes, however I'm starting to wonder if I didn't somehow come from an alternative reality instead."

Solas chuckled. "Not all stories that endure are true," he told her. She nodded. "It does not prevent us from keeping them sacred though, does it, Ser Solas?" she retorted, before giving him an apologetic smile. "I beg your pardon. That came out as rude and you did not deserve to receive nor be witness to my ire."

"No need to apologize. I am certain, were I in your shoes I would feel the same."

Varric examined Brahms for a second before asking, "Do you two really look alike enough that the mask was really a necessity?" The woman smiled and lifted up the covering on her face before securing it back. Varric whistled. "That would be a resounding yes. How is that possible?"

"It's called hereditary genetics and I apparently received the biggest share. Which is surprising given how it's been over a millenia and a half."

"Tick-Tock, remind me to buy you a drink back at Haven so I can listen to your story. I bet it's amazing."

"I'm afraid I don't drink alcohol, Ser Tethras, but I certainly appreciate the offer."

"Rain check then?"

"Of course."

"WOULD YOU HURRY UP SO WE CAN GET THIS OVER WITH?!" they heard Trevelyan shout.

 _I will not kill my ancestor and doom the world_ , Brahms repeated. _I will not kill my ancestor and doom the world._


	5. Chapter 5

She was going to kill her.

  
The meeting with Mother Giselle had gone better than she'd expected. Apparently her ancestor had at least some kind of brain since she'd handled the meeting with the chantry sister politely enough. But the gall of that woman to make such comments about Scout Harding and how the soldiers should just die if they were going to let their fear of magic stop them from being healed!

  
Brahms gathered the lists of needed supplies from the requisition officers and information from Corporel Vale, taking more time than Trevelyan wanted to spend out in the wilderness. Brahms readjusted her disguise after fighting another band of enemies on their way back to Haven, checking to see if anyone was wounded.

  
"Look at this! They tore my armor!" Trveleyan screeched. "Who cast that barrier?!"

  
It was Solas but Brahms decided to take the blame. He'd already gotten wounded. Getting verbally abused by her ancestor was the last thing he needed. "You suck at defensive magic," Trevelyan said. "My little brother could do better and he's not a mage at all!"

  
"Then you should be grateful that he isn't here because then you might actually be dead instead of wearing barely damaged clothing," Brahms remarked. She saw the rest of the party try and hide their amused expression at her words.

  
"Barely damaged! You are- Can you honestly not see this seam is unraveled?! And look! There is no way a seamstress can fix this so it won't look lopsided! It's just gone! I need new ones! Here: Give me yours!"

  
"No."

  
Trvevelyan scrunched up her face in anger. "Yes! Your armor is in perfect shape and not covered in mud and gore!" she said, stamping her foot.

  
"We are not in any- HEY!"

  
Trevelyan grabbed her hooded jacket, basically ripping it off the other woman and knocking her to the ground. Brahms was seeing red now and she felt the beginnings of an inferno spell conjuring in her palms.

  
_She needs to die._


	6. Chapter 6

Her palm itched.

  
Brahms rubbed her gloved hand, attempting some kind of relief. She glared at her ancestor who was currently unconscious thanks to Solas' quick use of a sleep spell. Although given how Cassandra had had to use a silence on Brahms before she'd set the spoiled brat ablaze, she didn't know how grateful she should completely be.

  
"Are you all right?"

  
She nodded in response to Varric's question. "Although I am not certain how long that will remain. I lost my temper and nearly killed _her_." She emphasized the word with distaste. "I genuinely wished her dead for a moment and let that blind me. I am glad Cassandra did what she did."

  
"First time I ever thought I would hear someone say that," Varric remarked. "A mage being silenced and grateful by it?"

  
"Cassandra did what was necessary. I'm more surprised she didn't cast a Purge. The act of evoking a concentrated silencing on me was, if anything, a mercy."

  
"You are one strange woman," the dwarf commented.

  
"I come from the future and nearly just killed my ancestor out of rage," she reminded him. "Normal is moot."

  
"Good point."

  
She swallowed a curse before rubbing her left palm again. Why was it itching? Allergies? Had she gotten bitten by something? She would examine it later once they made camp, ultimately visit the apothecary when they returned if needed. At any rate, what she needed to do was figure out how her outburst would effect her life. Cassandra and Solas had not said a word to her since the altercation and to be honest, she had no idea how to approach them. She would tonight at camp. Cassandra first as it would be the more difficult conversation and then Solas.

That was if she didn't go mad from her itching hand.


	7. Chapter 7

"I need to speak with you."

  
Cassandra looked at Brahms warily. "What about?"

  
"Earlier. And please do not interrupt me because I have to say this and I don't know how long I have to do so. What I nearly did was reckless and impulsive and if I am going to be punished for it, I accept whatever happens. But you silencing me was absolutely the right thing to do and I am grateful you did so. More because you could have easily purged me."

  
 Adrenalinewas pumping in her veins as she told this to the Seeker, who appeared rather shocked. Given how the status quo is, Brahms wasn't surprised with Cassandra's reaction at all. "I know - well I am aware of how things usually are in this age. My gratitude no doubt is a shock to you but please know I hold you in a high regard and know you will do what is best for the Inquisition and the Herald. So if I am to be executed because of my attack on the Herald, then I wish for you to know I understand and accept it."

  
Cassandra was at a complete loss for words, it seemed. With a bow, Brahms took her leave to go collect herself. That had involved a lot more courage than she thought it would have. She clenched and released her left hand, frowning at the stiffness. Itching and now stiffness? Did she get hit with a petrify?!

  
She removed her glove, fearing the worst. No. No hardening of the skin or signs of magical affliction she could see. The skin was raised and slightly puckered as if she were having an allergic reaction.

  
"Are you all right?" she heard Solas ask.

  
"I'm afraid I seem to have gotten into something," she told him, showing him her palm. He frowned and for some reason it worried the human mage. The frown retreated more into a concerned look quickly as the apostate gently went on to physically examine it. "It could be an allergen you are not familiar with. 1500 years of changes in environment could have left you with stumbling into a plant or contagion you would never have come across with in your own time. Or...."

  
"Or?" That was rarely a good sign.

  
"It could just be stress manifesting. Either way I am certain it will be cleared up soon. When we reach Haven I believe I can make something to help. It's the least I can do."

  
Brahms looked at him stunned. "You say that as if you owe me a debt. If anything, Solas, it is I who owes you everything. I have a feeling the only reason I am alive is because you managed to convince the others I was in some way valuable enough to not be executed. Either for attacking a soldier or for being completely mad. Which I do believe are crimes worth the axe in this time period?"

  
"The man who you fought with from what I understand was highly deserving of your attack on him. As for being mad, I can say with certainty you are not. You may have more clarity and wisdom to help shape these events before us than anyone. The only madness here would be to have you killed."

  
"Which may happen once she awakens and we return to Haven," Brahms insisted, her brown eyes looking at Trevelyan. "I assaulted the only hope Thedas has to stop this madness. Without her the Breach cannot be closed. No matter how valuable my information is, I expect some form of punishment. Flogging or something similar at minimum."

  
Solas looked at her as if he was trying to figure out a puzzle. "Are all the people in your time so wise and yet prepared for the worst?" he asked, finishing his ministrations. Thankfully it felt better now.  
"No. Probably not. People can be horribly foolish no matter what time you live in. I was just blessed to be given opportunity and mindset to want to become the best I could be. I wanted to be the woman my family could be proud of. I wanted to be like her before I found out what she's like. Now I can only pray I can do enough behind the scenes so that they all believe she is as great as the history books will say."

  
"You would willingly bind yourself in the shadows to allow someone unworthy claim your works as theirs? No matter the cost?"

  
Brahms stared at him in disbelief. Did he honestly not understand? "My very presence here could be written off as a cosmic mistake," she reminded him. "One wrong move or attempt to change things as they commence could tip the balance in ways no one can foresee. For all I know my being here has caused a ripple effect that did more damage than the Breach."

  
"You did not will yourself to be here," he said. It wasn't a question. It was fact.

  
"No. I did not. But I am here. And I intend to protect everything I can. The future is not perfect. One day I hope to discuss with you more on the subject. But it and the world is worth saving. I will not sit by and let it be destroyed."

  
"Better words could not be spoken," Solas said, approval lighting up his face. "You have a quality I find admirable and sorely lacking as of late. I look forward to watching what you will do."

  
"Does this mean you are staying with the Inquisition?" she asked.

  
"For now. Until the Breach has been sealed. You have my word."

  
Did she just officially recruit someone to the Inquisition? Brahms blanched at this realization. "Is something wrong?" Solas asked. She blinked and gathered her thoughts. "I'm thinking I might have just roped you into swearing temporary alliances with the Inquisition," she admitted. "Something that I should not have done. I fear I may have overstepped my bounds."

  
"On the contrary, Lady Trevelyan, I do believe you are the only one who can do it," the elf told her and left her to her thoughts.


	8. Chapter 8

She wasn't sealing the rift.

Brahms finished off a demon as she heard Cassandra order Trevelyan to use the mark to stop the demons from coming through but that selfish witch was just standing back and watching with a blank expression.

"Herald, use the mark before the next wave comes!"

She did nothing.

She was just going to continue to stare at Maker knows what while they tried to end the onslaught.

Brahms cursed, a good proper unladylike stream of words, and rushed over to the Herald. "Stop daydreaming and do your job!" she shouted, grabbing the woman's wrist. Trevelyan seemed to snap back to reality. "Let go of me!" she screamed. Brahms tightened her hold.

"Seal the rift before someone gets killed!"

"Go fuck yourself, you face stealing bitch."

Brahms felt her fury well back up. "You are cowardly ill raised wretch who was given the chance to help save the world and all you can do is focus on yourself!" she fumed. "USE. THE. MARK!"

"No!"

Brahms wasn't sure exactly what happened next. Just a lot of light, some pain, and then nothing.


	9. Chapter 9

"Brahmelline Abigail Trevelyan! Open your eyes!"

Brahms eyes snapped open at the familiar voice using her full name. "Mother?" she asked, confused.

"No, it's Andraste," came her mother's sarcastic response. "Of course it's me, you silly girl. Did you fall asleep reading again?"

Brahms blinked several times, sitting up from the desk she'd been sitting at in her tent. The dark haired woman looked around, trying to get her bearings. "I suppose I did," she muttered in quiet disbelief. Her mother, a tall woman with fair skin and red hair, took the book Brahms had been using as a pillow and closed it. "This book... it's the second time now our family history has put you to sleep!" The amused tone in her voice belied her annoyed expression. "You work too hard, my darling." Madame Trevelyan put the book away on the shelf before returning to her daughter's side. "Come now. Let's get you fixed up before your test."

"My test?"

"Are you still asleep? It's your final test before becoming a full fledged adult!"

That's right. It all came flooding back to her now. Her family had decided to host her rite of adulthood as part of their annual fair to celebrate their ancestors. In particular the Inquisition. An entire week of dancing, reenactments, food, games, and contests. This year, however, her father had pulled some strings and the main attraction was not a masquerade ball but her performing tests to prove she was both worthy of her family name but showcasing the skills she'd been honing since she was a child.

Her mother picked up the brush from the desk and started brushing her daughter's hair. "You are alright?" the older woman asked. "I know your father and I basically  strong armed you into this thing but-"

"Yes. I'm fine. I just don't want to disappoint you," Brahms admitted. Her mother stopped in mid-stroke. "What in the void do you mean? Brahmelline, you have done so much more than anyone could have expected." She put the brush down, placing her hands on Brahms shoulders. "You've been a blessing since the day you were given to us. When you came into our lives 23 years ago, I knew just by holding you in my arms that you would change everything."

"Even though I'm not your biological daughter?"

She could feel her mother's loving smile radiating behind her. "You _are_ a Trevelyan, my dear. Just because you came from another side of it, doesn't make you any less of one."

Brahms sighed, relieved to hear those words. "And _you_ are my mother. _He_ is my father. I am a Trevelyan," she stated, iron determination in her voice. Her mother went back to finishing her hair, pinning the braid up. "There. Now go fix your face and change before your handlers get here and drag you away to become a grown up!" The older woman planted a kiss on the crown of her head. Brahms stood up and hugged her mother tightly. Sorrow and a touch of fear were in her heart but her mother returning the hug calmed those forces. "I love you so much," Brahms said, tears pricking the backs of her eyelids.

Her mother pulled away, looking at her face with slight confusion. "You speak as if you're never going to see me again!" her mother teased. Brahms stilled as images flooded her memory. She shook her head to clear them away. "Everything will change after today," the young woman explained. "Even if I don't succeed in my tests, I still feel like they'll be different."

Her mother cupped Brahms face in her hands lovingly, giving her her most assuring look she could. "You will be fine. No matter what happens, your father and I will be right here praying for your success." She took her daughter's hands and gave them a squeeze. "Now go get finished up. I have to go fix my makeup now, wicked girl!" Brahms laughed and went to do as she was told. She felt better now but for some reason couldn't shake the feeling something bad was going to happen. That it wasn't all a dream. A horrible, anxiety induced dream.


	10. Chapter 10

She'd aced everything so far. Combat, Divination, Elemental Mastery, Horsemanship, Archery (which to her hidden smugness she'd actually managed to complete both tests simultaneously), Healing Arts, and Teleportation. All her tests were passed with flying colors.

  
So why did she feel like something was wrong?

  
"You've done well, Pup," her father praised back in their tent. "One final test and I'm going to have to start defending you against marriage proposals."

  
Brahms scoffed. "If you haven't recieved any for me before now, Father, I don't think you'll get any even after this final test," she teased him. He smiled. "True. But that doesn't mean your mother is any less eager to see a baby or two within the next few years."

  
"I have cousins that could fill that urge for her just fine."

  
He kissed the top of her head with chuckle. "Aye, but at least 3 grandchildren is something she's been secretly plotting."

  
"I'll get a couple of cats then. A black, a white, and a ginger. All fluffy and fat purring bellies," she said wiggling her fingers in the air. He tutted her. "Your mother is allergic," he reminded her with a smile.

  
"And I'm allergic to the idea of having children," Brahms said with a wry smile. "Have they decided on what my final test will be?"

  
"Not yet. I think your successes put a severe dent in the high scholars' plans. I think your mother is already planning a party for when we return home to celebrate."

  
"And no doubt inviting every available man and woman of means and wholesome reputation to see if I fancy anyone. Let's just take a moment to be glad we live in a society that gender is no longer a deciding factor in marriage, may we? It makes the matches even more endearing!"

  
"Keep that sense of humor, Pup. You'll need it."

  
A knock on the door and a messenger arrived with a letter for Lord Trevelyan. He gave the man some money as payment and they opened it. The smile on his face was gone in an instant as he paled. She felt that panicky dread spread in her once more.

  
"What's wrong?"

  
"Your final test. The High Scholars, they've chosen it."

  
Brahms looked at him expectantly. "What do they want me to do?" she asked with laugh. Maybe it would defuse the atmosphere? "Perform necromanacy? Summon a demon to bind to my will? Dance the Remigold in the nude?"

  
"They want you to unlock an eluvian."


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm just add a tag that says I am taking huge freaking liberties because I am a tool! What do you think? Also I can never spell Dorian's most awesome curse correctly. Someone put it in the comments for me so I never misspell it again, please?

"No, absolutely not!"

Brahms was being held by her mother on the sofa in their tent while her father paced back and forth. The comforting gesture was probably more for Madame Trevelyan than her daughter.

"This is madness. The eluvians have been left sealed off for a reason. Have the High Scholars lost their minds?! Need anyone remind them what happened the last time someone attempted to reopen one of those?"

Brahms looked at the man, her face confused. "Aren't the eluvians ancient doorways made by the elves?"

"A species that ended up wiping out everyone but most of the human and dwarven races because of that Fen'Harel bastard," Lord Trevelyan basically spat out. "Vashante kafass!"

"Darling, your Treventir is showing again."

"Maker preserve me, Clara, I do not care one blighted inch about my Trevinter heritage right now. Has our family not endured a trial with an eluvian before?! Cabrian was tested just like this 24 years ago. The results were horrible. And for what? To see if they could find someway to look into the past with more clarity?!"

"Is that what happened? Is that what caused the explosion?" Brahms looked at her father in shock and confusion. He stopped, staring at her with anguish. "I was never to speak of it," he admitted. "But since they are so determined to try and perform a task that they swore would never again be attempted, I no longer am bound to silence."

He sighed and summoned a chair to sit in. "You know that you are not my biological daughter," he began. Brahms nodded. "And yet I cannot love you any less than if you were my own flesh and blood. I know you feel the same and Maker knows I _wish_ I could destroy this memory of that day. Burned bodies frozen in the throws of agony. The stench of the charred flesh."

"Just like the Conclave... the Temple of Sacred Ashes..."

Brahms looked at her mother, who nodded in agreement. "So it was an explosion?" she asked, looking confused.

"Much more than that," Lord Trevelyan said. "The eluvian is nothing more than a doorway between worlds, or so the legends say. But whatever happened, whatever Fen'Harel did in attempts to tear down the Veil caused that particular one to act much like the focci Corypheus used over a millennia and a half ago."

"It made another Breach?!"

Her father shook his head and Clara went to get him some water. "Nothing like that. There were incursions from a few demons but luckily it was culled before anything horrific happened."

"How did you stop it?"

"Your mother died," he informed her and Brahms felt as if an ice spell had just been cast on her very soul.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My sister is taking away the laptop and I'm releasing as many chapters as a I can. Because I don't know when I'll get it back!

Touched by ancient elven magics.

  
The bloodline is infused so vastly with his power, the Dread Wolf's magic seeped into their very DNA. The very soul of the line brought forth from the Inquisitor.

  
No wonder they had been so strong and resiliant to his machinations.

  
"I don't even think she was aware she was pregnant when it happened," Lord Trveleyan explained. "I know it wouldn't have stopped her. Her husband was killed, every attendee of Cabrian's rite dead by an explosion. Demons were escaping from the eluvian. We couldn't get inside because the magical currents were whipping about too violently for anyone to get any kind of counter move or suppression. It was just her in there. All we know is she used every ounce of her magic to destroy the eluvian before it could create a Breach. "

  
"She burned through her soul," Brahms finished. She felt numb. And yet nauseas. "But I'm only 23. How did she-?"

  
"Her soul was gone but her body still lived in a sense.There was call for you to be aborted so they could study the fetus. Luckily that move ended quickly once we threatened to act against the Council of Magisters and reveal all details about the incident."

  
"And now here we are 24 years later and someone wants me to try and open a gateway to doom without causing hundreds if not thousands of lives to end?" Brahms asked. "I thought High Scholars were elected for their intelligence."

  
"So did we," Madame Trevelyan replied. "Byron, we cannot let her go through with this. Darling, you must forfeit the final challange."

  
Brahms looked at her mother in shock, then looked at her father. "You can't be serious," she declared. "If I forfeit, I can never become a full fledged citizen according to the law. I cannot marry and if I did have children, they will not inherit unless no other heirs are avialble in the estate. Unless given to benefactor, upon your deaths I will be almost the same as a castless dwarf used to be."

  
"You will have your life."

  
Oh yes, and what a life it would be. Forfeiture wasn't like failing. If she'd failed, she could merely take the tests again after a year. Forfeiting was an end game maneuvere. "They must have been planning this for a long time," Lord Trevelyan stated. "Any oppurtunity to call for a new challenge is gone. Pup, I know what this means to you but I cannot risk your life or the lives of anyone here because some officials' decisions."

  
"No, I'm not going to-"

  
"Listen to me!"

  
He grabbed her by her upper arms tightly, shaking her and she winced. "You cannot do this! I cannot allow you to throw away your life!" He lessened his grip on her and hugged her against him. "If anything happened to you, I could not endure it. Brahmelline, you must forfeit this challange. We will find some way to ensure you can keep your status and livelyhood if Maker forbid anything should happen to us. But if you go through with this, the repurcussions will-"

  
"Enough," she said. "I understand. I will admit forfeiture."

  
The words tasted like iron and she felt her numbness take root. This felt like a bad dream. As if the one she'd had previously involving her ancestor hadn't been jarring enough now this? This was a nightmare. But it wasn't. This was real.

  
"My darling, I am so sorry this is happening," her mother cried, hugging her. Brahms was now sandwiched between her parents but she didn't care if she was being squished. Her world just felt hollow.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am just freaking on fire tonight.

"You wish to forfeit?"'

  
"Yes, My Lords," the words came out of her mouth like a slow poison but she made no show at the pain they were causing her. "After certain details involving the previous unlocking of an eluvian were revealed to me, I can honestly say the disgrace of my forfeiting seems less horrific than what might be unleashed if I were to proceed."

  
"Is there nothing that this council can say that would sway you to change your mind?"

  
She shook her head. "You realize what this declaration will mean, young lady," another one of the scholars asked. Couldn't they just  agree to this? "Honored Members, I am quite aware of the consequences of my decision," she said, looking at the three gentlemen seated above her. "I am also aware that should I attempt to unlock the eluvian, the same event that happened 24 years prior could happen again. I cannot take part. I will not be part of it."

  
"You would sarcifice your future on the off-chance of another Breach?"

  
What part of this forfeiture were they not understanding? Brahms took a deep breath in and exhaled slowly. "I will happily be left to obscurity to avoid it," she stated. Lord Trevelyan was apparently growing tired of this constant prodding as he stood up. "My daughter has spoken. Accept her decree, Council."

  
"Lord Trevelyan, if she forfeits this challenge, you know the consequences. Your most noble house will fall and there will be no heir to the Inquisitor's bloodline. _You must make her accept_."

  
"My Lords, there is no power in all of creation that will force me to make my daughter perform your challenge. Now accept her choice."

  
"She will open the eluvian and free me," one of council member declared in a voice not his own. The voice was deep and caused her chest to tighten in fear. So many things happened at once, she could barely register. She felt her limbs paralyzed and heard people screaming. In particular her father shouting her name.

  
"You will bow to the will of the Elder One," she heard that voice, that horrible deep voice say. "You will free me and I shall finally take my place as your God."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> He's ba~ack!


	14. Chapter 14

Her body felt like it was on fire.

No.

It felt like it was fire. Pure raw energy. It felt really good and frightening.

"You are still an abomination," Corypheus stated. He threw a lightening bolt at her which she deflected.

"And _you_ are worse than a cockroach! You should have stayed dead!"

She threw several fireballs in his direction, the ancient magistrate skillfully avoiding them much to her distaste. "You cannot defeat me, Child of the Inquisitor. You will die and with your blood I shall ascend to my rightful place in the Heavens."

She dodged and weaved as he sent spells and a few demons towards her. Her body didn't feel like her own and she swore she might be glowing green. What in Void was happening?

Outside of this fight, she could feel every capable fighter defending and battling. Their magics were rippling almost through her.

"My ancestor banished you to the Fade. You should be dead!"

"You cannot kill a god," was his now cliched response.

"You really need a new line," Brahms stated.

Corypheus threw a force blast at her and she moved out of the way. The ground below her feet was starting to quake and she jumped backwards to avoid jagged pillars of stoned from impaling her.

"You merely are delaying my freedom, Child. I shall inevitably be victorious."

A desire demon came up behind her and she slid away as it fired a beam of energy at her. Unfortunately, it was in the right spot for her main foe to land a well placed lightening strike on her. Brahms screamed in pain and fell to the ground.

"BRAHMS!"

_Mother?_

She heard the high pitched whistle of several arrows and felt the controlled explosions of her mother's master shots behind her, with Corypheus howling in pain. Dark eyes looked up in the direction the shots were fired and she watched as her mother broke the neck of the desire demon who'd fired at Brahms earlier.

Her mother was really strong.

Brahms got back to her feet, recasting the barrier on herself while quickly casting some glyphs on the ground. She could feel something growing close by. The eluvian was charging with magics being used in it's vicinity. She could feel the sick kind of crackling within her as the object grew more and more ready to activate. If it opened... By the Gods, what would happen?! The world would end. There would be nothing. Nothing worth existing.

_Your mother died stopping the eluvian by sacrificing every ounce of magic she had._

Her father's words echoed through her mind. Could she do the same? With her the line was bound to end no matter what happened today it seemed. Fate was cruel, wasn't it?


	15. Chapter 15

"Lady Trevelyan!"

_Solas?_

"Is she breathing?"

_Cassandra?_

Brahms tried to focus on the voices but her body hurt so much. She felt like she was being ripped apart at the very seams. Why was she hearing them?! They hadn't been real. Just dreams. Unlike the nightmare she was currently in.

Would they have been good friends? she wondered.

She blinked, bringing herself to focus on the eluvian which looked a whole lot bigger than she thought it should. _Use everything you have. Take it inside you and burn it through!_ She put her hands on the barrier of the mirror's surface, trying not to rip herself away out of self preservation as the energy seeped into her.

Hot, so unbearably hot. And yet it was so cold.

Unearthly sounds were everywhere. Outside her and in her mind.

"NO! You will not stop me again!" she heard Corypheus scream. He attempted to hit her with a spell but she summoned several ropes of energy that latched onto him. "To the void with both of us!" she shouted, dragging him close enough he couldn't escape.

An explosion of light.

Corypheus screaming.

Then silence.

Blissful, Maker given quiet.


	16. Chapter 16

She should be dead.

  
By every damned logical or possible odds, Brahms Trevelyan should be in the sweet embrace of whatver passed for the afterlife. However she was currently laying on a bedroll, still in the Hinterlands.

  
How was she still alive? _Why_ was she still alive?!

  
Anger replaced confusion. What was going on? She lifted her her hands to cover her face, no longer caring about the pain that the throbbed with every breath or movement. Nothing was making sense!

  
"You mustn't move," came Cassandra's firm yet gentle tone.

  
"Why?"

  
The Seeker looked at her, unsure of her meaning.

  
"I should be dead right now. Not because of the rift or that demon attack. I-"

  
"Hush, your ladyship," Solas urged softly. "You were injured quite badly. Yet you managed to close the rift. Your body is in no shape to do much but mend."

  
She opened her mouth to speak but felt a cool push of magic followed immediately by unconcsciousness.


	17. Chapter 17

They were treating her with kid gloves. Like she was a porcelain doll that might shatter at any moment with the wrong move.

  
Her ancestor on the other hand? Well apparently fate had a sense of humor because she hadn't survived the attack. Cassandra said it was too grotesque to show and she had no doubt the warrior was right. She was in too much shock to do anything, let alone argue.

She shouldn't exist. She shouldn't be alive.

Was she allowed to grieve? Was she allowed to do anything?!

Brahms felt like she was about to lose her mind.

  
They were returning to Haven for now in a cart because her wounds were suspected to not be healed enough for her to move for longer than a snail's pace. Her magics were still as strong as ever but her mana hold was diminished until they could get her back to somewhere more suitable for healing.

  
Or to be more precise, somewhere they could more properly deal with a cover story. Because they were going to need one and to figure out where to go from here. They still had the Herald of Andraste as far as the world was concerned. But it wasn't the one it should have been.

  
It wasn't the woman who was supposed to have become Inquisitor and lead the fight against Corypheus.

  
It wasn't going to be Brahms Trevelyan.

  
Because Brahms Trevelyan no longer existed. Or maybe she never did.

  
That hollow feeling she'd had the day of her final challenge? It was back. And she didn't feel like it was ever going to go away.


	18. Chapter 18

"As far as the world is concerned, nothing has changed," Leliana said to the occupants in the room. "All you had was an injury. It is unfortunate about your friend's death."

Her friend? Was that what she'd been according to the original cover story?

"Is that it?" Brahms asked flatly. "I should just pretend it was another pointless death and mourn eventually?"

"Unfortunately, Herald-"

"I AM NOT THE HERALD!" she shouted angrily, slamming her hands on the table. The anchor flared up momentarily before returning to a soft glow. "I cannot be the Herald."

"Are you taking back your promise to help us?"

Brahms looked up in shock at Leliana. "Are you seriously asking me to continue playing pretend?!" she demanded. "You don't seem to understand-"

"No, you don't seem to understand," the spymaster stated. "Without the mark, the Breach cannot be closed. You have valuable inside knowledge to events that will shape the world. You made us a promise. The reason you are even walking around right now is by divine intervention at best. You must be the Herald. You must be Brahms Trevelyan until such a time we and the world no longer need her."

Until Corypheus is defeated and she bears at least one child to pass the bloodline on through.

One heartbeat.

Two heartbeats.

"Whatever it takes, right?" Brahms asked in an emotionless voice. She hoped it sounded as dead as she felt right now. She stood up straight, chin up. She did her best to look authoritative. "I should be healed up soon. We'll return to the Hinterlands afterwards to finish our business there. Afterwards, I'll head to Val Rouyeax to speak with the Chantry. Excuse me."

She bowed slightly and left them to the rest of the meeting.

______

"You were too hard on her, Leliana," Josephine stated. Cullen agreed, adding, "This whole new arrangement is bad enough for us. She was only supposed to pretend to be the Herald."

"She'll make a better one than the original we had."

"That is not for you to decide," Cullen hissed. He was angry at everything that was going on but right now it was mostly at the sight of the Herald's face. "Did you not see her? She's about to crack."

"I know how she feels. But she will learn to cope."

Would she? Cullen wondered. Unlike the first Herald, this Brahms Trevelyan struck him as someone who cared more about others than herself. She seemed to feel more. When she'd asked about the soldiers earlier before they'd left, he'd thought initially her horror had been because of the change of her history or whatever it was that had given her knowledge. But he'd seen her the night before they'd gone to the Hinterlands. He'd watched her pull out the list of the names of the fallen soldiers that had been written down. She'd lit a candle for each one until they'd run out before conjuring more candles to light. At the end she'd knelt down and prayed for a good hour at least.

The difference in reactions by the two women named Trevelyan to the deaths of his men were like night and day.

"Whatever happens at least the Mark is safe," Leliana stated, bringing him to focus. "Everything is under control and we don't have to worry about the repercussion of having our Herald perform important tasks any longer. Apparently she's quite skilled in battle at both magical and normal methods. We won't have to divert any more extra manpower than necessary. Solas was correct about the Mark being stable on her and he confirms the power is under control. Everything is under control."

"And if she ends up cracking under pressure?"

Leliana looked at him. "I have ways to deal with that if the time should come, Commander," she said. Ice pooled in his veins at the tone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Be worried. Everything will be okay, but you should be worried.


End file.
